Easy Salmon Cakes
We wanted our salmon cakes recipe to be simple to prepare, so we broke out our food processor. Pulsing small pieces of salmon allowed for more even chopping and resulted in small, discrete pieces of fish. We also found a way to ditch the egg and flour steps of the breading process in our salmon cakes recipe. Instead, we coated the salmon cakes with panko, which we also used to bind our salmon cakes.
3 tablespoons plus 3/4 cup panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1 scallion, sliced thin
1 small shallot, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
pinch cayenne pepper
1 (1 1/4 pound) skinless salmon fillet, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup vegetable oil
If buying a skin-on salmon fillet, purchase 1 1/3 pounds of fish. This will yield 1 1/4 pounds of fish after skinning. When processing the salmon it is OK to have some pieces that are larger than 1/4 inch. It is important to avoid overprocessing the fish. Serve the salmon cakes with lemon wedges and/or tartar sauce.
1. Combine 3 tablespoons panko, parsley, mayonnaise, lemon juice, scallion, shallot, mustard, salt, pepper, and cayenne in bowl. Working in 3 batches, pulse salmon in food processor until coarsely chopped into 1/4-inch pieces, about 2 pulses, transferring each batch to bowl with panko mixture. Gently mix until uniformly combined.
2. Place remaining 3/4 cup panko in pie plate. Using 1/3-cup measure, scoop level amount of salmon mixture and transfer to baking sheet; repeat to make 8 cakes. Carefully coat each cake in bread crumbs, gently patting into disk measuring 2 3/4 inches in diameter and 1 inch high. Return coated cakes to baking sheet.
3. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Place salmon cakes in skillet and cook without moving until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Carefully flip cakes and cook until second side is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer cakes to paper towel–lined plate to drain 1 minute.
Serve.
THREE EASY STEPS TO CRISPY SALMON CAKES
1. CHOP INTO PIECES Hand-chop fish into 1-inch pieces before adding them to food processor. Any bigger and you’ll end up with some large chunks and some finely ground paste.
2. PULSE INTO BITS To ensure that pieces grind evenly, pulse chopped fish in 3 batches into 1/4-inch bits. (Be careful not to overprocess.) Mix with bread-crumb binder and flavorings.
3. COAT Gently coat shaped cakes in coarse panko bread crumbs. Salmon’s high concentration of water-soluble proteins glues crumbs to patties without need for egg or flour.
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